For the love of a bike.

Just about every kid in America gets a bike either for a birthday present or a Christmas present at some point in their childhood. And there starts the journey. New found freedoms and easy transportation. It becomes so much easier to get around and over to a friends house. Maybe a trip to the local convenience store for some candy. Meeting friends after school at the local park.

My love affair with my bike started much this same way, and for several years after my first ride it was my sole mode of transportation. I used it for everything, riding to and from school. Delivering newspapers on my own route, (had a small route of about 72 papers) I delivered in the rain or shine seven days a week almost exclusively on my bike.

I’m almost fifty now and remember the first time I saw a P.K Ripper. It was the most beautiful bike I had ever seen. The kid that was riding it was smiling ear to ear and you could tell right away he was very proud of his new bike. His name was Gary, wished I could remember his last name, he was the person responsible for introducing me to BMX. That’s for another story.:-) His bike was a brilliant red color that shined from every angle possible.

I would like to Thank Gary for these memories. It was not to long after I bought my first bmx, not as fancy as Gary’s P.K but a bmx none the less. My first bmx was a Huffy Pro Thunder, red and white color scheme purchased from Meijer Thrifty Acres in Grandrapids Mich. Had it on layaway for many months. At it’s sales price of $88 it was no wonder as I was barely making much more than 5 dollars a week with the paper route and the couple of yards I mowed.

This is getting a bit long so I’ll leave it here for a while and pick back up in a day or two……